It is very difficult for a first time buyer to know what to look for in a litter of puppies.

Key points to remember are

[li]Pedigree papers are not evidence of health. Both parents of your puppy must be health tested. [/li]
[li]Puppies are not ready to leave Mum until 8 weeks of age - inexperienced breeders sometimes let puppies go earlier because they are really hard work![/li]
[li]Good breeder do not sell puppies in pairs.[/li]

Do have a read through the articles, there is information on finding a good breeder, and spotting the bad ones. Information on relevant health checks and much more.

A sick dog will break your heart (and your wallet) it pays to buy the best.

Remember, all puppies are gorgeous, utterly adorable and irresistible. And Labradors are the most numerous breed in the UK. It is a buyers market. It is really worth doing your detective work before you hold one in your arms.

We have a 10 month old female lab that suffers from seperation anxiety and gets over excited when seeing or are around other dogs. We are taking her to obedience training, but she gets very distracted by the other dogs.

We are now considering getting a new puppy (also a lab) as a companion, but are not sure if when choosing a new puppy if we should pick a high energy or meduim energy puppy seeing our puppy is a very high energy puppy and should we pick a female or male. Please advise.

Hi Pippa,
I finally got onto the forum after finding my login details in the spam

It's a pretty difficult journey selecting the right Puppy so far. I have had to pause my research for the mo' because I'm waiting for my finances to be finalised but though I have read your advice and am determined to ask all the right questions and be as cold as ice I found that every advert I was reading that seemed to fit the bill of my requirements got my pulse racing and I got a certain anxiety to get a pup quickly in case 'they are all gone' when I finally am able to contact breeders. I even phoned a breeder and was tempted to take one of her pups earlier than I could really manage because it met my fox-red desires and the mother in the photo looked so beautiful! I managed to resist the temptation in the end but only because the mother hadn't been hip-scored and your articles had covered that. It's a minefield though, particularly if you are as keen as I am to get your hands on a puppy. So thanks for this site etc. because it's a gem.

The Kennel Club website lists lots and lots of breeders, but also have a look at the ChampDogs website (champdogs.co.uk). They have a list of available litters, and they also have stricter criteria for the breeder that they accept as members (see their 'terms and conditions' page - for example they don't accept breeders who breed from bitches under 24 months old). We were directed to their website by a local breeder, and found our beautiful boy as a result

There are some useful info pages there too, like a puppy buyers guide.

In the US, it is common to place a deposit on pups even before they are born. Here for Labs there is a lot more emphasis on the hunting, hunting tial and field trial accomplishments than the benched shows. For many breeds they emphasize the show accomplishments, but not so much for Gun Dogs, especially Labs. None of the lines we have bought dogs from even mentioned shows. They do show all of the medical clearances for the parents, and that is considered important.

In the UK there are specialist gundog breeders, specialist show dog breeders, and then pet breeders. Most people buying what they call a 'show line' dog or a 'working line' dog are really just buying pets, even if the breeder dabbles in gundog work or the show ring.

If you were seeking a dog with very particular characteristics, from a well known trialing or show kennel, then you would have to put down a deposit before a puppy was born, or get lucky (everyone has to find homes for pups, regardless) - and you might even struggle to get on a waiting list. Lots of pet dog breeders - those with a good track record, great health results from the parents etc. also have waiting lists for puppies, but there is plenty of availability of well bred pets and it's not difficult to find good puppies.

For many breeds they emphasize the show accomplishments, but not so much for Gun Dogs, especially Labs. None of the lines we have bought dogs from even mentioned shows.

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If you are buying a working line dog, in the US called a field line dog, then the breeder won't mention show success. This is because it is possible to work a show line dog, but not successfully show a working line dog. The conformation of working line dogs is, these days, too far away from the breed standard for many (or any) to have success in the show ring.

In France I paid a deposit nine months before Juno was born. The main reason for the deposit was we had just missed out on a girl from the litter just born and we wanted a girl, not a boy - the colour was of no importance. The deposit secured our place on the waiting list so we had first choice of the girls born in the next litter. Most breeders in France, well all those I researched, will take reservations on a litter once a pregnancy is confirmed. The breeders are very open with the results of x-rays, eye tests etc. together with successes both in the field and the show ring. What you don't seem to have is dogs being advertised as "field" or "show" lines, I think the French just expect to be able to train a Labrador puppy to work whilst still meeting all the conformation requirements of the breed.

In the US, it is common to place a deposit on pups even before they are born

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I believe that's pretty common here in Australia too as it secures your place on the waiting list. Our breeder (breeds pet dogs only) refused to take deposits as her opinion was, if you wanted to pull out, she didn't want you to take one of her puppies just because you'd paid a non-refundable deposit.

Hi
I bought my first lab bitch yesterday. I have vaccination paperwork, & she's microchipped to me.
She's 9 weeks old and so far has come when she's been called, has had hardly any accidents in the house and is very friendly and quite forward
She's booked in at my vets on Saturday for a check up and registering.
I bought her purina beta puppy kibble for her to try
I have had a jrt for 15 1/2 years until he went over the rainbow bridge in feb, so although I am new to labs, I am not new to dogs, but I want to do things better this time

Moderator Note Sadly, in some parts of the world there is a tragic trade in tiny puppies barely able to walk. On the Labrador site we frequently get comments from people who have purchased puppies as young as 21 days old. Their owners will usually need help from a qualified veterinary professional if the puppy is to survive and thrive.

Our forum policy is to encourage people to wait until their puppy is eight weeks old before collecting it from the breeder. To make sure we are not encouraging the trade in underage puppies, nor depriving these puppies of essential veterinary attention, we have the following rule.

If a forum member’s puppy has been removed from the breeder/ mother before the age of seven weeks, that member must wait until their puppy is seven weeks old before posting about him or her on the forum

We recommend that anyone with a puppy under this age contacts their vet without delay for instructions on feeding, general care, and medical treatment. We understand that members want to help these puppies, but the forum is not the right place to be distributing specialist advice of this nature.

hey guys
Im thinking about getting a dog and would really love it to be a lab but i have a few questions about if my lifestyle is compatible. Im 15 and my parents are divorced so it might have to change houses every week or so but i dont have any siblings so theres no toddlers to worry about knocking over. I live in a medium size house with a backyard that is not massive but has more than enough room to walk around in. But my main concern is leaving it home alone. I would get the dog during my summer break which is about 6 weeks long, so i would have some time where i could be home most of the day so it could get adjusted. But during the school year Im out the door at 8 and don't return till 4 and my parents are the same. After i get home and can take it for a hour or longer walk and give it as much love and attention till i have to leave the following morning, so my main question is can the dog be home for 6 to 8 hrs most week days having only the garden and the house to roam around in and with only a cat to keep them company providing that when i get home the dog can get as much exercise and love as it needs. I also plan to consult some family friends who are vets and have been for many years. But as some lab owners i just wanted to ask your opinion before "taking the plunge"